Exclusive hybrid supercar reserved for the world's population of One Percenters

by
Gabriel Gélinas, Driving | December 5, 2013

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MONTEREY, CALIF. — With its price chasing upwards of US$845,000, Porsche has changed the sales and marketing approach for 918 Spyder prospective buyers so that it’s exclusive to the world’s population of One Percenters.

“The traditional way of doing business at Porsche has always been to announce a new car and then to open the order books,” explains Laurance Yap, director of marketing at Porsche Cars Canada. “But with the 918 Spyder, we are engaging customers in a much more active way.”

Porsche plans to sell exactly 918 units, a number judged to be on the high side by many industry observers, and that process began a year ago when the German carmaker started to contact potential buyers for the 918 Spyder, offering them the opportunity to sample the prototype on selected race tracks.

“Some of these prospects already own a Carrera GT or a special-performance Porsche model and we invited 10 Canadian Porsche owners down to Barber Motorsports Park to attend a special presentation of the car and to ride as passengers,” Yap says.

Martini 2013 Porsche 918 Spyder.

By acquiring a 918 Spyder, customers will get a first right of refusal on any new Porsche model, as the brand will reach out to 918 Spyder customers before the brand’s own dealers. Also included is admission into the 918 Circle, an exclusive club of 918 Spyder owners. Run out of Germany, the 918 Circle plans to offer members-only access to between four and five events a year that will be organized around major happenings such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Cannes Film Festival, or the Frankfurt Auto Show. A special magazine is also in the works for 918 Spyder customers and selected prospects already have access to an exclusive iPad app detailing the 918 Spyder.

Also unusual for Porsche is the 918 Spyder’s relatively short options list, which includes special paint colours or a no-paint vinyl-wrapped finish and a special “Weissach package,” which trims the cars weight by 30 kilograms through the use of Magnesium centre-lock wheels, lightweight suede materials for the steering wheel, center console and door panel trim and the removal of the air conditioning system, the audio system as well as the glove box. The Weissach package also means that the car’s roof, windshield frame, mirrors and rear wing as well as it’s rear anti-roll bar are made of carbon fibre. A super-fast charger is also an available option, enabling a shorter 30-minute recharge time. There’s also a custom-made luggage set, and the customer can choose between two types of seats.

Porsche’s 918 Spyder at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show.

As part of its presence in Monterey for the 63rd Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Porsche brought one of the 50 918 Spyder prototypes and pre-production cars that are in existence today to offer passenger rides to potential customers on the Carmel Valley Road. I was also scheduled to drive the 918 Spyder at the close of the event, but was informed that it would not be possible because of a technical glitch with the car.

Frank Walliser, the 918 Spyder program manager, told me that there was a problem with one of the hardware controllers of the high-voltage lithium-ion battery and that this was a safety issue. He went on to share that the car present in Monterey was a prototype built in January of this year equipped with an earlier-generation “B 2.2” battery and not the more recent “C” battery that Porsche has since been developed. He also mentioned that this particular car had taken part in both hot and cold weather testing, that it had lapped the Nurburgring and that this type of problem had never happened before. As he said, “It’s part of the R&D process. We will resolve the issue by removing the battery and running diagnostic tests on it, but, sadly, it means that the car cannot be run for the time being. It’s a case of wrong place, wrong time.”

Stay tuned, as we will get another opportunity to drive the German supercar in the near future. (Monday, Dec. 9, in fact. Check back for our full review and many more photos.)